Tickle Wars
by Indigo Boy
Summary: When Castle Card Shop has a sudden early closing, it's two most loyal patrons spend the day hanging out. But when a tickle fight erupts, things get...rather embarassing. GaoXKazane


**Hiya! I'm new on the Buddyfight fanfiction scene, so any feedback, be it positive or negative, is appreciated.**

 **Anyways, i was looking through the like, 189(190 now) fics for Buddyfight, when i realized...there's only one GaoXKazane fic. That pairing seems so..fun, and there's only one..albeit that one was great. If you're curious, it's Aiyana-J. Snowbear's _"Christmas Gown",_ and i recommend it if you want another story with the GaoXKazane pairing.**

 **Now, with all that out the way...**

* * *

 _ **"Tickle Wars"**_

* * *

 **"Winner: Kazane Fujimiya."**

The monotonous voice announced as the digital field slowly vanished, and the once again victor Kazane grinned happily as her own Dungeon World flag eroded into flaky orange particles before fading away.

"That's our tenth straight win!" She cheered, fist pumping the air excitedly. While winning to her wasn't the best part of Buddyfighting, it still made her proud when she heard the voice announce her name as the winner. Maybe it was a bit egotistical, but she didn't care. All she knew was that today was her day, she was feeling it, she was winning, and above all else, she was having a lot of fun.

"Naturally," Her winged Buddy Monster, Bladewing Pheonix, huffed. He was far more uptight than she was, but he was a big ol' softie at heart. At least, that's what she thought. "You are a world class fighter, Lady Kazane. I doubt anyone in this card shop can beat you." The orange haired girl sheepishly scratched the back of her head, nervously chuckling at Blade's comments on her skills. Though Blade was never shy in telling her his opinion on her Buddyfighting, it was still a little bit embarrassing when he went and called her things like world class. She wasn't _that_ good...

"Don't be so mean, i'm sure there's plenty of great players in here to fight! After all, Buddyfight's a game where anyone can do anything if you try hard enough!" Blade huffed again at his Buddy's enthusiasm. He didn't share her overly optimistic outlook on Buddyfight, but he couldn't deny, her energy was infectious.

"Maybe, but still, i doubt that any of these average players are capable of defeating you, Lady Kazane, after all, you are as i said-" Blade was cut off by a loud voice that somehow seemed to call the attention of everyone in the shop, despite it's huge size.

"The Mighty Sun Fighter is here!"

Everyone looked to the entrance of the card shop, and were shocked to see none other than Gao Mikado, savior of Earth, standing there with a grin on his face. Everyone was surprised, Kazane and Blade included, as Gao hadn't really came to castle since Drum was forced to return to Dragon World. Kazane couldn't possibly understand completely, after all, her buddy was still perched on her shoulder, but if Blade was forced to leave...

She shook her head. Now wasn't the time for thoughts like those.

"I think i found my next opponent, Blade," She commented.

"That ill mannered mongrel?" The green feathered chibi pheonix huffed, "He's hardly worth the effort!" Kazane sweat dropped. She still, after knowing Blade so long, had no idea what a mongrel was, but she was sure that Gao wasn't one of those. He was nice, and fun, and strong, and had the cutest determined face when he was in a heated Buddyfight-

Wait.

Where did that come from?

Disregarding that as a rather common case of her totally losing her train of thought, she brought her attention back to Gao, only to find that the sun fighter was no longer at the entrance.

"Huh? Where did-"

"Hey Kazane, long time no see!" The girl nearly jumped out her jacket as Gao was suddenly right in front of her, that same grin on his face. Recomposing herself, she smiled back.

"Yeah, i haven't seen you since we beat Yamigedo!" She replied, "So how have you been doing since...you know." She avoided saying it outright for obvious reasons, but Gao immediately understood. _Since Drum left._

"Good, i guess...It's been weird not having Drum around the house anymore, and i miss him a bunch, but knowing him, he'd probably hit me in the head with his drill if he found out i was moping around all sad, so i've been trying to stay happy and look on the bright side!" He laughed as he finished his sentence, and Kazane couldn't help but admire how quickly he seemed to have bounced back. She knew that Gao and Drum were best friends, so she wouldn't have held it against him if he was still depressed, but actually, he seemed stronger than before Drum had left!

"That's good, i know if i ever lost Blade, i'd probably cry, so you're a real tough cookie, y'know? For being so positive," She complimented, and Gao sheepishly scratched his cheek in that cute way-

Again, where did that come from?

Once more dismissing the thought, she refocused as Gao began speaking. "Well, if there's anything my brother taught me, it's that as the Might Sun Fighter, being positive is what i should always try to do! So my soul can shine bright like the sun!" He fist pumped the air, and Kazane again couldn't help but admire him. He really was a big ball of warmth and energy, just like the sun was. She'd always found the speech he did a little goofy, but now she had a whole new respect for both it, and Gao.

"Well, Mr. Sun Fighter, how about we have a Buddyfight? I know you don't have Drum, but you still know how to play, right?" She teased, and Gao predictably took the bait.

"You bet! I'm ready to go, any time, any place!" He declared, his grin getting even wider, if that was possible.

"Not so fast you ill mannered mongrel! If you think you can just waltz in here and get a Buddyfight with Lady Kazane, you are sorely mistaken!" Blade intervened, and both Gao and Kazane sweat dropped.

"Uh...Blade? _I_ challenged _him_. He's fine," She deadpanned, before smirking at Gao. "Besides, i gotta get you back for beating me back when i was Wind." Gao, not one to back down, looked her straight in the eyes, his grin becoming a smirk as well.

"Oh yeah? We'll see about that, Wind."

"Kay Sun Fighter, it's on!"

Before either player could actually luminize or anything though, a loud cry of "Waaaaaaaaiiit!" caused them both to look up at the balcony, where the castle manager was panting, hands on his knees.

"What's up?" Gao called up, and after deeming himself to have a sufficient level of oxygen in his body. the manager replied.

"You guys can't have a fight right now!" He exclaimed, and both Gao and Kazane raised a brow.

"Why not?" Kazane questioned.

"We're closing early! My assistant manager is home sick and i have a family emergency," He explained, and with a sigh, both kids nodded.

"Fine, we'll stop!" Gao shouted up to the manager, and with a thankful nod, the man walked off.

"Well, i guess we'll have to save our fight until tomorrow," Gao sighed, "That's kind of a bummer. I was looking forward to a good fight, too." Kazane nodded. She had wanted another Buddyfight with Gao for a while, and now she had to wait all the way until tomorrow.

"Yeah...i guess i'll see ya tomorrow, then?" She questioned. Gao frowned slightly, seemingly in thought, and was quiet for a few moments before finally answering.

"Well, since it's still Summer Vacation and we've got nothin' better to do, why don't we just hang out today?" He offered, and Kazane found herself slightly surprised. They were great friends, sure, but the two of them had never hung out by themselves before...

Well, there's a first time for everything.

"Sure, sounds fun!"

"Hey, wait a second! Lady Kazane, why would you waste your time hanging around this ill mannered-" Blade's protesting and trademark insult was cut short by Kazane pressing her finger to the pheonix's beak. "Blade, why don't you go back in the deck and rest for a bit? i'm sure you're a bit tired after ten straight fights," She suggested, although both she and Blade knew that she wasn't really asking.

"But, Lady Kazane-"

"If me and Gao are gonna hang out, i can't have you calling him an ill mannered whatcha-ma-call it every two seconds," She said firmly, and Blade, albeit begrudgingly, gave in.

"Fine!" he huffed, "But you," He narrowed his eyes at Gao, "If you do anything to harm Lady Kazane," He flew just close enough to whisper in Gao's ear. Once he finished, he swiftly turned into a card, returning to Kazane's core deck case. Kazane smiled in satisfaction as she looked back up to Gao.

"Okay then, let's g-" She stopped when she saw Gao, with an almost dead expression. He was pale as a ghost, shivering, and now several feet away from her. Titling her head, she curiously asked, "Uh...you okay?" Gao meanwhile, couldn't stop whispering to himself.

 _"Think happy thoughts, think happy thoughts, think happy thoughts.."_

* * *

After Gao recovered from the trauma of whatever Blade had whispered in his ear(which he refused to repeat), the duo departed from the closing Castle Shop and began strolling down the street. As Gao had pointed out in the shop earlier, it was their summer vacation, and while most Aibo kids were off on an actual vacation somewhere, like Kuguru and Suzuha, most of them were either in their houses or outside, like she and Gao were at that moment. Because of that, the streets weren't bustling like usual, and instead, a rather calm aura seemed to flow through the city.

As the duo passed by a group of stands, Kazane's nose caught a whiff of what she could only describe as something mouth watering. And judging by how Gao had stopped walking, so had he.

"Is that..." He sniffed the air like a police dog, "I think it is! It's Ganjou's stand!" He exclaimed, a grin spreading across his face.

"Who's Ganjou?" Kazane questioned, but rather than answer, he merely grabbed her by the hand and started running in the direction of the delicious smell, dragging her along. Not that she minded, though a warning would've been nice.

"Ganjou's a friend of my family, and i've known him since i was a baby. He cooks some of the best Takoyaki ever!" He explained, before quietly adding, "Don't tell my mom i said that."

Kazane giggled. "I won't," She replied as the two came to a halt at the front of the stand. The sign read _"Ganjouyaki: Best Takoyaki In Japan!"_

"Yo! Ganjou!" Gao greeted the man, who looked to be in his mid thirties. He had wiry brown hair, dark brown eyes, and a round face. He wore a rather typical chef's attire, complete with the weird looking hat, and wore an apron that looked like it'd been in use since she was born.

"Good to see you Gao!" Ganjou greeted, smiling. That was when he noticed the two's intertwined hands. "Oh, your mother didn't tell me you were already dating! Jeez Gao, you're almost as bad as your father!" The man laughed heartily at his own remark, seemingly not noticing the two confused children until Gao spoke up.

"Uh...What are you talking about, Ganjou? I'm not dating anyone," Gao replied, still not realizing what gave the man that idea. Not that Kazane herself had noticed either.

"Don't be ashamed, Gao! She's a pretty girl, no need to hide it, i won't tell anyone," Ganjou assured with a wink, and Kazane felt herself turn bright red at the man's comments. As a person who was more or less a tomboy, she was rarely told how pretty she was, aside from family, obviously. So to have him say something like that was flattering. Not seeming to notice her though, Gao again didn't realize what made Ganjou think such a thing.

"For the last time, we aren't dating! What even gave you that idea to begin with?" He questioned, and Ganjou stared blankly at him for several seconds.

"...Do you not notice what your hands are doing?" Gao and Kazane, as if in sync, both looked down at their hands, and again, as if they were in sync somehow, both realized what had happened at the exact same time. Immediately letting go of each other, both of them now sported a shade of red on their cheeks. Ganjou laughed again.

"Tell ya what? As an apology for assuming things, i'll give you both some of my world famous Takoyaki, on the house!" That immediately caused both children to forget about embarassment in favor of absolute glee.

"Really?! Awesome!" Gao cheered, and Kazane agreed.

It was indeed awesome.

* * *

The two had gone to the park to eat, as it was the closest place on their small list of locations to eat, and because parks were fun.

"That was the best thing i've had all day!" Gao said in satisfaction, patting his belly. The two occupied the swings, as they were both good seats, and rather fun. Besides that, the playground was empty, for whatever reason. Maybe parents thought it was too hot for the park, or something.

"Yeah, that was delicious!" Kazane agreed, "I could eat those every day forever!" The weather was beginning to cool down a little bit, and the light breeze certainly contributed to her little observation of the weather.

"Hey Kazane..." Gao began, bringing her attention away from the weather. He had a mischievous look on his face, which she didn't trust...But this was Gao, the most trustworthy guy she knew. He wouldn't do anything to her, right?

"Yeah?" She answered warily, still slightly cautious. Then, out of nowhere, Gao struck, tapping her arm.

"You're it!" And before she even had a chance to process all that, Gao was off and running, cackling like a mad scientist...or the guy that invented laughing gas.

"Why you..." She trailed off, her sentence breaking down into a fit of laughter, before she took off after Gao. She knew something was up when she saw that look on his face! Gao was surprisingly fast, managing to remain a substantially good distance away from her despite her running at top speed.

"You'll never catch me alive!" Gao called back in a terrible pirate accent, and had she not been slightly winded from running, she might've laughed. But she was gonna catch him, and get vengeance.

Sweet, sweet vengeance.

As she once again started to catch up to Gao, the latter made a sharp turn, causing Kazane to nearly fall in an attempt to follow, but fortunately, she managed to use the momentum to keep pace and actually make some progress towards reaching him. Finally when she was within reaching distance, she reached out to tag him, however, all she managed to do was knock off his hat, which flew back as if it _wanted_ her to catch it. Gao stopped as he realized his favorite hat was missing.

"Gaaaah! My hat! Where's my-" He stopped mid panic attack when he saw Kazane, who now had the hat on her head. For a few seconds all he did was stare at her, until that red in his cheeks from earlier came back, and he snapped out of his stupor.

"Heheh, i think i win, Mr. Sunfighter!" She said triumphantly, and Gao defeatedly approached her.

"Fine, i quit, but can i get my hat back?" He pleaded, and Kazane smirked.

"Maaaaybe," She replied coyly, and Gao suddenly smirked back, which set off a lot of alarms in the orange haired girl's head.

"Maybe, huh? Well, i think this may change your mind," He said confidently, causing Kazane to raise a brow.

"What's going to change my mieeeeeeeeeee!" Her question quickly morphed into a squeal as Gao began tickling her sides, causing her to wiggle and laugh and wiggle some more.

"Stop it!" She cried, before laughing harder as Gao moved to her armpits. "NO! Armpits aren't even fair!" Gao, who now had the advantage in their little game, smirked.

"I don't remember making rules," He said innocently, as if trying to remember, "do you?" Kazane couldn't answer as she was too busy laughing as Gao tickled away. She hadn't been tickled in forever, and he went to the forbidden spot! Armpits were always ticklish spots, so he basically cheated, in her eyes.

Well, two could play at that game.

"I give! I give!" She shouted, and Gao finally haulted his assault, allowing her to breathe as she fell to a sitting position in the grass. Gao did the same, chuckling as she caught her breath.

"That was priceless!" Gao snickered, causing the orange haired girl to frown.

"You cheater," She pouted, crossing her arms, though she couldn't help the smile on her face. "You used my armpits!" Gao just laughed again, and this time, Kazane joined in the laughter, not because anything was funny, but just because she hadn't had this much fun doing anything but Buddyfighting before. As Gao seemed to relax, their laughing fit coming to an end, it dawned on Kazane that Gao was wide open. No defense, no escaping. She grinned darkly.

Sweet, sweet vengeance.

Without warning she lunged, and like Gao, started at the sides, only this time she was the one attacking.

"I thought you gave!" Gao cried, before giving in to his laughter.

"I could say the same the same to you!" She shot back, and again without warning, moved up to the armpits.

"Nonono, waiiiiit!" Gao tried to wiggle away, but Kazane wasn't going to let him off that easy. She managed to get on top of him, straddling his hips to prevent his escape.

"I quit!" He finally surrendered, and Kazane triumphantly cheered. It may not have been a _Buddy_ fight, but a Tickle Fight was somehow just as rewarding.

"Yes!" She cheered, and as she raised her arms in victory, Gao suddenly rolled over, and she ended up flat on her back with the Sun Fighter now on top. Kazane was stunned not because she didn't expect it, but because she didn't expect it from Gao. It was a surprisingly smart move, though she then remembered his Akijujitsu background and figured that such a thing should've been expected of him.

"Ha! I think win this round, Kazane," He boasted smugly, a smirk on his face.

"Oh yeah?" She challenged, slightly lifting her head so that she could look him in the eyes. She wasn't going to give up that easily.

"Yeah!" Gao responded, doing the same until their noses lightly touched at the tips. Both of them seemed to feeeze, as neither seemed to possess the ability to move back. In fact, Kazane's guts were telling her to lean in, just a little bit more...

"I could've sworn i heard i heard Gao's voice over-"

Gao and Kazane both snapped out of whatever trance they'd been in, as Noboru Kodo of all people was standing there with a blank expression. Before either of the two could even formulate an explanation for their position, Noboru swiftly turned around and started to walk off. "Sorry to interrupt," He apologized calmly, and both Kazane and Gao turned brught red again.

"IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK!"

* * *

 **That was an odd story for me, but i think it was fine. Remember, if you have any feedback, feel free to leave a review, and if you'd like to suggest anything, be it a pairing or a plot idea, either leave a Review or PM me.**

 **Till next time,**

 **Indigo is out.**


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